Caskett Through the Years
by PerfectTwo96
Summary: The team have no case and Beckett ends up reminiscing about the pivitol moments in her and Castles relationship through the years.


**I've been working on this one for a while and it's a birthday present for my amazing friend Inneedofatimeturner-27. Happy Birthday!**

**Just a bit of Castle fluff 'cos I love them. Also I didn't want to end with the marriage propasal 'cos then I'd have to make up her mind. Seen as I'm an avid Caskett shipper I want her to stay but who knows? Right I'll let you read now. Please review :)**

**Disclaimer - I don't own it.**

Kate Beckett sat down at her desk and turned on her computer. She was not looking forward to the long, slow day she had ahead of her. They hadn't caught a case in the last three days so even all her paperwork was done but she had to be here anyway. She looked over at Castle's chair missing her boyfriend way more than she should be. He probably wouldn't come in today knowing they had nothing to do but hey a girl can hope. Her computer decided to be very annoying this morning and not want to turn on quickly so she got up to go get a cup of coffee. Another thing she was missing about Castle. Just as she was exiting the bullpen she caught sight of the person who was so often on her mind

"Good morning Detective Beckett how are you this morning?" He asked enthusiastically while handing her a cup of her favourite coffee. How can someone be so enthusiastic this hour of the morning is the first thing that crossed her mind.

Holding onto the coffee for dear life she answered "Tired and not looking forward to the long, slow day ahead."

"Someone is grumpy this morning, would that have to do with the fact that you didn't get to spend the night with me or because I was late with your coffee?" He asked as they both sat down in their chairs and Kate drank her coffee like her life depended on it.

"Both. More of the first." She would have given him a longer answer but she was tired and the coffee hadn't kicked in yet.

"I'm sure you had a great time with you're Dad and I had a great night with Alexis but I missed you." The last point came out as more of a five year olds whine than a sentence.

"I missed you too Castle." She said showing more affection than she usually would. "What did you and Alexis do in the end?"

"Laser tag. It was awesome, right so..." As Castle launched into a detailed description of how the game of laser tag went, Beckett's mind began to wander. She was remembering snapshots and moments of their time together and moments when their lives just happened to cross paths.

Her first memory of him was not so much of him but more so of his books. It was the day of her mothers funeral and she had spent the last few days walking around like she was asleep. Her father had hit the bottle earlier and she doubted he'd come out of it any time soon. After hours of sitting on her bed in her childhood bedroom just staring out at the snow falling outside she stood up and let her legs carry her into her parents bedroom. There she sat on the floor with her back leaning against her mothers side of the bed facing the bookshelf. She closed her eyes and decided to read the first book that caught her eye. The book? In a Hail of Bullets by Richard Castle. From the first page of that first book she was hooked. She read every book, queued at every premiere. His books got her through her mothers murder. Her fathers drinking.

Her next memory of him was when she walked onto what seemed like another crime scene but the moment she saw what was before her she knew this case wouldn't be like any other. This was one of his crime scenes. She loved it and hated it. Loved it because it was from his mind but hated it because this meant that someone who had helped her a lot - even if he didn't know it - was the prime suspect in a murder investigation. That case was a particularly tough one but at the same time one of her favorites. That was the case that brought them together.

In the beginning she hated him. He was insufferable and stuck up. His wild theories annoyed the hell out of her and he was never any help. He thought all he had to do was smile or throw around his money and she'd swoon but that wasn't the case and maybe that's what drew him to her. Once he realised that he changed in her eyes.

When he got the offer to do more Nikki Heat books she acted like she was angry but secretly she loved it. She got to spend every case with him and to be honest he was becoming helpful, actually solving cases. Rather than annoying her with his absurd theories they amused her and made her laugh.

Then she saw him with Alexis and her whole perception of him changed. She saw the Dad Rick instead of the playboy Rick. That was the first side of him she fell for. She should have realised back then that he really was her one and done.

All of a sudden Demming came into the picture. She went out with him because he said nice things and made her feel relatively happy. But not Castle happy. Then Castle invited her to the Hamptons with him and she stupidly said no. But as soon as the words left her mouth and she realised that she'd made a massive mistake so she broke up with Demming and went to find him. He showed up with Gina to say goodbye and left her heartbroken. The team spent months putting her back together.

Then she got with Josh and he broke up with Gina and everything was a mess but somehow they managed to still work side by side everyday. She may have been with Josh but they both knew that she liked Castle and he was second best and always would be. They fought over and over about it and even now she doesn't know why she argued and didn't put both of them out of their misery and break up with him.

Next came the case where they were undercover and they kissed. Both of them felt it that night. The attraction, the longing, the need, the passion. For once they both gave into their feelings. All boundaries came down that night. And it was perfect. Better than she could have ever imagined but it was over all too soon and neither of them brought it up after. It was forgotten.

Then there was one of the hardest cases for both of them. The case that changed everything. The terrorist in their city. The freezer. The nuclear bomb. They nearly froze to death in each others arms. It was then, when she was lying in his arms dying that she realised that she really did love him. She tried so very hard to tell him but it was too late, she passed out and they barely got out of there alive. Again that day was never spoke of after. That same case they stood beside a nuclear bomb as the timer counted down the last minute of their lives. He saved her life that day and that is something she will never forget. After he pulled out those wires all she wanted to do was kiss him but she settled for a hug not knowing at the time that he had wanted the same thing.

Then there was L.A, nothing happened but everything could have. That could have been the start but she had been too scared to go back through the door, not knowing that he was waiting for her. One of her biggest regrets in their long, complicated relationship.

Her biggest regret though had to be when he told her he loved her and she pretended to not remember. She had just been shot and as she lay bleeding out in his arms he had told her he loved her. It was the first thing she remembered about the shooting and she knew immediately that she had to break up with Josh because really she loved Castle back. She wasn't ready for him to know yet but it wasn't fair to Josh, stringing him along like that. It took her almost a year to come to terms with her feelings.

Within that year there was the time that he had been taken hostage by bank robbers and his life was truly in danger. She thought she may loose him that day but somehow they got more time together. Still though she couldn't tell him. Looking back now it seems stupid and she can't really put her finger on why she couldn't say anything to him. She just couldn't.

Then there was the time they woke up together handcuffed. That was just plain weird. Neither of them admitted it but they were both thinking of themselves under different circumstances. She had come close to saying it to him that day.

Next a conversation with Lanie flashed through her mind. Telling her to tell Castle before he moved on. That he wouldn't wait forever. And he very nearly didn't, she very nearly lost him before she got him. Lost everything.

After weeks of tension that she couldn't explain between them she found herself hanging off the side of a building several stories up by her fingertips. As she was hanging there with her grip slipping she should have been thinking about her life or her Dad or her Mom or even the fact that if she ever got out of this perilous situation that she'd loose her job but no, all she could think of was Castle and how they would only ever share that one kiss. All she could think of was his face if he found out she gave up and fell. It was up there that she realised that she wanted to be with him. For keeps. Then she could hear her calling her. There was no denying the disappointment when she found out it was Ryan.

She can remember the feeling of the rain on her face as she sat on the swing, their swing, trying to gather up the courage to go over to his apartment. She can remember calling him and having no answer. Walking up the stairs to his apartment. Knocking on his door. Him asking what did she want and the only thing she could come up with was 'You, I'm so sorry Castle. He got away and I didn't care. I almost died and all I could think about was you. I just want you.' That night was the night it all came together, It was all either of them had ever wished for and more.

Life since then hasn't been easy by any stretch but she has been the happiest she's been since her Mothers death. They kept it from everyone and it was great, they had their little bubble that they could go to and nobody else knew about it. They eventually told Martha and Alexis, the latter not being too keen on the situation in the beginning but she came round when she realised Kate had no intention of hurting him. The boys were chuffed of course.

Then there was the fiasco at the Hamptons that neither of them really want to bring up but she wont let him forget that he owes her a body- free trip to the Hamptons.

Soon after she had to question everything she knew about him when a case came along where all the evidence pointed to Castle. It was very hard on them and their new relationship but never for one second did she doubt him. She did love him after all.

It took a disastrous 'meet the parents' dinner and the insueing case for them to realise that they could overcome any obstical people threw at them. That week really cemented their relationship and it was around then she realised that he was her one and done.

That first Christmas of their relationship was the first time she ever broke her traditions for anyone. Christmas was this massive thing for him but it was something that was just painful for her without her Mother but he changed that. As well as a lot of other things.

That Valentines Day she gave him a drawer. They already practically lived with one another at either his or hers but the drawer was an acknowledgement of the fact. A massive step in their relationship and something she would never take with anyone else.

Right after that Alexis was kidnapped and it made her realise that she was beginning to see the younger girl as a daughter. It was an extremely stressful time for both the team and their family. Because that's what they were now. Family. But she had to be strong for Castle. His little girl was missing. So she did what she did best and helped find her. The whole thing was very stressful on them all but brought them closer as a family.

Then there was the day she found out how much she really meant to him. After a case where he thought they were both going to die she found out that the number one on his bucket list was 'Be with Kate'. That made her realise that maybe she meant as much to him as he did to her.

After that she had to come up with the best birthday present ever and that she did when she had a murder staged for him in the house across the street. For a minute she thought he was furious but then she realised she had succeeded at getting him the birthday present of a lifetime.

Throughout their relationship they had to deal with many other men and women but none like Erik Vaughn. That was probably the only moment in their relationship when they both thought it could end. Just as he leaned in to kiss her she thought of Castles face and realised that she couldn't. She loved him more than life itself and she couldn't do that to him. Some how they recovered what they almost lost and she was never more grateful.

Only last week was that threatened again. Another bomb. What was it with them? Were they just attracted to bombs? This one she really thought was going to kill her. So much so she finally told him she loved him. It was long overdue but she had told him through her actions. He knew but now he needed to hear it. Somehow he got her off the bomb and she literally fell into his arms. The Captain also let them know she knew that day but it didn't matter because she was alive and they could be together.

A week on from that and things were better than ever. Neither of them could be more in love and they had spent every possible minute with each other.

Just then she zoned back into their conversation. "...and then I jumped out from behind the kitchen island and totally surprised her and I won!" He looked like a five year old on Christmas but that was what she loved about him

"You know I love you right?"

"I know Beckett, I know." He replied with a childish grin.


End file.
